


Cousins

by SelfProclaimedUnicorn



Series: A Court of Glass Oneshots [6]
Category: A Song of Ice and Fire & Related Fandoms, A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Gen, Implied abuse, Sibling Relationship, Vague descriptions of violence, dog attack tw
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-13
Updated: 2019-08-13
Packaged: 2020-08-20 09:21:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,108
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20225494
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SelfProclaimedUnicorn/pseuds/SelfProclaimedUnicorn
Summary: I suck at titles, and I'm sorry for the lameness of this one





	Cousins

**Author's Note:**

> I suck at titles, and I'm sorry for the lameness of this one

Heiley stood closely to her father, her gloved hand holding tightly onto the edge of his cloak. She didn’t know if this was an attempt to ease her own awkwardness or hold him back from whatever he might do, but the tension was impossible to ignore. Even her mother, usually detached and composed, seemed to have let go of her usual calm. Heiley and her brother watched in anxious silence as they were introduced to their mother’s family, as the usually imposing woman seemed to visibly cringe as her own brother kissed her cheek in greeting, and as their already large father seemed to draw himself up even taller as he gripped his brother-in-law’s hand so tightly that it turned his own knuckles white. Neither Heiley _ or _Royce knew what it was, but it seemed as though something besides meeting their Bolton relatives was going on during this trip.

With introductions to uncles and great-uncles and cousins out of the way Heiley now turned her attention from the members of the other House, to observing the Dreadfort. It was tall and black and sharp, long and narrow like her Uncle Roose. Must all Lords look like their keeps? Winterfell was as somber as Lord Eddard, and the Iron Halls were as sprawling as her great-grandfather was wide--and the impenetrable walls reminded her of the hard layer of muscle still underneath his wrinkled skin. Even her grandfather and father were as large and broad and muscled as Lord Chass...would Royce become like that when it was his turn to be the head of House Clement?

She was pulled from her wide eyed observation of the harsh, black keep by a familiar tug on the back of her coat. She released her grip on the dark green cloak draped around her father's shoulders and turned around, greeted by her twin brother's mischievous grin. Much to her surprise their cousin stood behind him, grinning in much the same manner...although the grin didn't seem _ quite _ right on Ramsay.

"Let's get out of here, it's boring and Ramsay said he has dogs!"

A large smile lit up Heiley's face, excitement sparkling in her eyes. She gripped Royce by the shoulders and turned him around, pushing him to guide home towards their cousin. The twins strode forward with a single minded purpose: _ pet the dogs _.

Their cousin barely acknowledged the addition of Heiley, mostly addressing Royce before leading them towards the kennels. _ Typical _ . But she supposed it didn't matter that he was going to be dismissive of the girl joining them so long as she had equal opportunity with these dogs. _ They _ wouldn't care about a girl being there, especially not when it meant double the attention.

Ramsay flung open the door to the kennels; a chorus of loud, hostile barking cutting through the excited chatter Heiley and Royce had been engaging in until then. He confidently strutted into the dark, cage filled room, nonchalantly giving instructions to the old kennelmaster. Finally, he turned back around to look at the twins. His brow furrowed, the wide toothy grin on his face faltering for the first time that day.

"Well, _ come on then _!"

"I don't know...they seem-" Royce began to respond, but he was quickly cut off by his older cousin.

"The girls are fine! They're just excited from a new scent--they'll calm down once they've seen you." He beckoned Heiley and Royce into the kennels, the grin returning to his face before he continued speaking. "The girls will _ love _ you."

Heiley watched as Royce took a deep breath in through his nose and pursed his lips. There was determination on his face, but she could see the nervousness in his eyes. Nonetheless, he squared his shoulders and took a few steps to follow their cousin into the lair of the barking dogs. Following her brother's lead, Heiley set herself to follow the boys into the kennels, only to stop just inside the doorway as she let out a bloodcurdling scream.

Time became a contradiction--everything seemed to happen instantaneously and take a lifetime all at once. The hound flew from the cage and pounced on Royce. Barking, snarling, screams and cries of pain, and cruel laughter filled the air. Heiley wanted to run to her brother, to hit her cousin, to get the adults, anything, but her feet were firmly planted in place. All Heiley could do was scream and feel hot liquid run down her face, fear and panic bringing tears to her eyes.

More sounds came now. Feet approaching in snow, and a flurry of words coming from the adults as the footsteps came faster.

All of a sudden Heiley was pulled into an embrace, her face now buried in the black velvet of her mother's gown--shielding her from further seeing the dog attack her brother. She felt her lady mother's desperate grip in her hair, her arms and other hand shaking as Heiley was held in the tight hug.

There was the sound of cold metal and the fleshy thud of a body falling onto the stone floor of the kennel. Heiley could swear her heart stopped until she heard Royce's cries again. There was the loud sound of flesh being struck and the shuffling of feet as the barking of the rest of the dogs picked up once again. Who had been hit?

Heiley freed herself as best she could from her mother's grasp. She could now see the body of the dog sprawled on the floor and oozing blood, and her father holding a bloody sword. Her uncle loomed over Ramsay, who's right cheek was now bright red. A bruise from Uncle Roose's ring was already forming on the pale flesh of Ramsay's cheek.

"Bolton!" There was a forceful anger in her father's tone. He still held his sword, gripping the hilt tightly as he made no moves to sheath the weapon. "I relent to--" He was cut off as a fresh, louder cry came from Royce. He moaned in pain as he was picked up by the older, bearded man who had been introduced as their great-uncle.

"I will have no killing here!" Heiley's great-aunt stepped forward and pushed the twin's father towards her husband. "Go, bring the boy to the maester with Terren!" The woman then turned towards Uncle Roose as her father trailed behind the relative bringing Royce into the keep. Heiley slipped from her lady mother's grasp and ran after the men. The last thing she heard before the kennels were out of earshot was her mother.

"Your bastard is dead if he even _ looks _ at my children again."


End file.
